


Comfort

by Broken_Clover



Category: Guilty Gear
Genre: Angry Venom, Awkward Kissing, Drunk Zato, M/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-06-01 00:10:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15130790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Broken_Clover/pseuds/Broken_Clover
Summary: After Millia runs away from the Assassin's Guild, tensions are high, emotions run rampant, and Eddie has to deal with his stupid host being stupid.





	Comfort

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TalkingBackwards](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TalkingBackwards/gifts).



> A long-overdue fic for a friend on Tumblr, who wanted more content for the pairing. I'm not sure if this was quite what you were expecting, but I hope it's still alright!

When word got out of Millia’s defection, a flurry of emotions overtook the Guild. Zato was more quiet than usual, trying and failing to avoid letting slip his anger, confusion, and subdued sadness. Slayer expressed disappointment, but in whom, he wouldn’t say. Some Guild members admired the woman and were heartbroken to witness her running away. Some were more wary of their leader, trying their best to appease him or stay out of his way or risk inciting his anger and bringing it upon themselves. 

And Venom? Venom was angry.

At first, it was difficult for him to determine the reason behind that. Millia had infuriated him for the longest time. Surely having the one who had taken his master’s heart leave would have been a good thing? Shouldn’t he have derived pleasure from that? It only seemed logical.

After a lot of thinking, he came to a conclusion. It wasn’t because Millia had left Zato. It was because of how casually she had done it. Venom had spent so much time devoting himself to his master, pledging his loyalty, but never having his affections and admirations returned. He’d lived in absolute jealousy of Millia for years- how his master would always dote on her and speak such kind words to her. Millia never appreciated any of it, though. She remained forever aloof, even in their relationship. Venom never knew what it was that Zato saw in her, but as much as he’d wished to be content in his devotion, he had always wanted more.

Millia had possessed everything that Venom had ever wanted. And she threw it away like trash.

In spite of all the anger within him that threatened to boil over, Venom forced himself into silence once more. He kept his usual proper mannerisms and expressions throughout the day, managing to look almost nonplussed by the news and the reactions around him. He did as he was told, checking on the current assassination targets, and offering a few choice words of sympathy to his master before politely retreating to his room for the night.

Within the solace and quiet of his own space, Venom allowed himself to come unraveled. It wasn’t often that he let himself become genuinely angry, and didn’t resist as he let his body lash out as it wanted. He was barely even aware as he stripped off his dress shirt and gloves and promptly slammed his fist into the nearest wall. That was satisfying, if painful, so he struck it again. He cared neither about the loud thumping noises he was making nor the deep marks cutting into his knuckles, just focusing on the satisfying sting that helped him ignore what was going on.

Just as he was starting to get a handle on his emotions, he was thrown into further disarray by the sound of someone knocking on his door. Of all the times…

“Ah, yes?” He managed to make out, sounding relatively normal, if a bit shaken. “Do you require assistance?”

“...Venom?”

The man felt confusion overriding his lingering anger. He knew his Lord’s voice by memory, but what was he doing here? It was rare that Zato would actually come to his room. Typically, if he required Venom for discussion, he would merely send a lesser agent to summon him to the man’s quarters. Was something amiss?

“Lord Zato?” It was impossible to keep the confusion out of his tone. 

“Venom.” The voice repeated, all but confirming its owner. Strangely, something about it seemed...tired. Worn-down. “May I come in, please?”

“O-of course, my Lord!” Strange or not, he certainly wasn’t going to say no. He rushed over to the door, throwing it open. He realized a moment later that he was still not wearing a shirt.

Venom immediately found himself with other things to worry about. Zato was slumped over slightly, like he had been using the door to support himself. While he was trying to wrap his brain about that, he picked up the odor of alcohol. Zato wasn’t a drinking man, and Venom couldn’t remember the last time he had seen his master take so much as a sip. 

“I...Lord Zato? Are you alright, sir?”

He was offered no reply. The man made a dull, low noise before suddenly losing balance against him.

“S-sir-!”

Zato jolted back up, held up by a pair of dark hands. They passed the body over to Venom, who managed to support his weight as the hands went away. He caught sight of a pair of glowing eyes peering over his master’s shoulder. “Eddie?”

“Finally, someone else has to deal with him.” The creature growled. “I had to drag this idiot most of the way here.”

Venom was taken aback by the rude tone directed at his master, but he didn’t have the time to scold. Supporting most of Zato’s weight, he helped the man half-stumble to the bed and sit down. All the while, the scent of alcohol lingered. Just how much had he drank?

“Thank you, Venom.” Zato nodded sluggishly as he sat down. “I knew I could rely on you.”

“Of course, sir, but...what is going on? You can hardly stand.”

“I wanted to forget.” The man’s voice was slurred, just slightly. “I couldn’t stop thinking about Millia.”

An imaginary sigh ran through the assassin’s mind. Of course. Millia. It was always Millia. Even with her gone, he couldn’t escape Zato’s love for her.

Still, he had an obligation. “She is a deserter, milord. Still, if it is your wish, I will do everything in my power to return her to you.”

“No, no.” Zato waved a hand. “If I decide that, I will handle it on my own.”

“Oh. If I may be so bold, why are you here, then?” Venom realized what he had said, and immediately backpedaled. “My apologies, I overstepped-”

“Sit down, Venom. Sit down with me.” Zato placed a hand on the mattress, patting it slightly.

“Yes, sir.”

As soon as he sat down, Venom felt a hand on his face. The sudden sensation made him flinch. Still, the hand remained in place. Looking to his side, he found Zato extending his arm to him.

“Milord?”

“I’m so glad I have you, Venom.”

That, combined with the hand on his face, had Venom at a loss for words. This couldn’t be his master. He was never so forward, so intimate. Even a simple touch like this was unusual. It was the sort of thing that he saved for Millia, not for his underling. He _really_ must have been drunk.

The fingers on his face were remarkably gentle. They stroked his cheek before slipping up to thread themselves into his long hair. In spite of his usual indomitable self-control, Venom found himself leaning into the touch, enjoying the feeling and attention from his master.

“Lord Zato…”

“Yes?”

“Why are you doing this?”

The hand in his hair paused for a moment, before going back to stroking. “I don’t appreciate you nearly enough, do I?”

Well, that settled it. Zato was absolutely drunk out of his mind. There was no way that he would say something like that normally, even as satisfying as it was to hear.

Venom tried to stand up. “Master, I believe that you’re heavily intoxicated. If I may be so bold, I don’t think you know what you’re saying. I would advise that you-”

Zato’s hand shot out to grab him by the wrist. “Stay.”

Despite his better judgement, he complied, and sat back down. Zato reached out to him again, turning his head to look at his blindfolded eyes. Venom could feel his heart skipping. Drunk or not, he’d never been so close to his master before like this. Zato had never behaved so intimately around him.

“You’ve always done so much for me, Venom…” Zato slid next to him. The close proximity made him all too aware of the alcohol on his breath.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake.” Eddie’s sharp voice hissed. “Stop dragging it out already.”

Before Venom could think, he felt soft lips pressing against his. His mind told him to pull back, but he couldn’t stop himself from relaxing into the hands that Zato still kept on his face, relaxing into the gentle, if messy kiss. He knew it wasn’t real, but it was all that he had ever wanted, what he’d dreamed of for years.

A soft moan escaped Zato’s lips as they parted for air. “Millia…”

Venom felt a heavy weight sag in his chest.

“...I don’t know if she ever loved me back.”

That was unexpected. “Sir?”

Zato’s hands tangled into his soft white hair again. He pulled Venom closer, breathing in deeply to take in his scent. “Maybe I did love her. I’m not sure. But I don’t know if she loves me anymore. Or if she ever truly did.”

With the more intimate environment, Venom allowed himself to place a reassuring hand on his master’s shoulder. “Love is a complex thing, sir. I’m sure you tried your best.”

The man smirked. “You’d know a lot about that, wouldn’t you?” 

Venom flinched back. “I-I don’t know what you mean.”

“Don’t be naive.” Zato pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I’m not an idiot. I know that you’ve liked me for quite some time.”

The assassin could feel his face heating up with embarrassment and shame. His master knew?! How could he not say anything? Did he truly disregard his feeling so much that he couldn’t even give an answer?

He tried to pull away, but Zato’s hand grasped at his again and pulled him back.

“Why are you walking away?”

Venom tried to keep his voice from shaking. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

For once, Zato looked uncertain. His hand slowly traced Venom’s, deep in thought. He was pulled from them when his fingertips traced over the scraped knuckles, making Venom flinch.

“You’re hurt.”

“I-I’m fine, I- milord?”

Pulling the hand up to his face, Zato lightly kissed the damaged flesh. With the alcohol making him sloppy, he missed several times, eventually just deciding to leave a series of light butterfly kisses near the wounds. Venom could feel himself going redder, unsure of how to respond but enjoying the attention too much to move away.

“How did this happen?”

“It’s nothing you need to bother yourself with-”

“Venom.” The firm tone was familiar, and Venom unconsciously straightened up. “If one of the agents has been causing you trouble, I would like to remind them of their place.”

“N-no, sir.” There was no point in lying. Hopefully, if Zato was really as drunk as he looked, he wouldn’t remember. “I...punched a wall.”

“What?” Zato sounded appalled. “Why?’

“I was angry.”

“At?”

“Millia.” Just saying her name flooded his thoughts with irritation, and he couldn’t keep himself quiet. “It’s not fair! She just left! You loved her, and-”

“And you were jealous.”

Venom didn’t think he could be any more humiliated. “Of course I was.”

“She had everything you wanted, everything that you had worked for, and just gave it up.” Zato moved up a little, awkwardly kissing his wrist. “And that made you _furious._ ”

“Yes.” Though he knew full well that Zato couldn’t see him, he couldn’t bring himself to look at his master’s face as he continued to kiss up his arm. “Er, Lord Zato? You never answered my question.”

“Hnn?” The man paused, making a little slurred, drunken noise.

“You...you knew I...had an interest in you. Why didn’t you say anything? Do you truly regard me in such a poor manner?”

Zato didn’t reply. He tilted his head slightly, confusion clear despite the lack of eyes. “Wha…?”

 _‘Right. He’s drunk.’_ “Did you not care about me enough to tell me outright? Would turning me down have been too difficult?”

Despite the simplification, Zato still looked confused. “Why would I turn you down?”

It was Venom’s turn to be puzzled. “You love Millia, my lord. Regardless of the feelings she returned, you still-”

Zato cut him off with another kiss. Venom reflexively flinched away, but Zato was strong, and only leaned in harder. Before he knew it, Zato had wound up on top of him, too drunk to keep balance. Somehow, he had still managed to keep his lips on Venom’s, pressing him down into the mattress.

“Believe it or not,” Zato said with a smirk, “I can like more than one person at a time.”

Venom tried to speak, but only an undignified stammer cam out. “But- but I-”

“Oh, Venom.” Pausing to continue the kisses, Zato let his lips trail down the other’s throat. “Sweet, sweet, Venom. So beautiful, so clever, so loyal…”

The assassin could feel himself going warm again. It felt like his wildest dreams were coming true. But still… “Milord, you’re drunk. You don’t know what you’re saying.”

“What makes you say that? Who _wouldn’t_ want you? Any man would be lucky to call you his. And yet…” Zato paused. “You still remain...untouched, don’t you?”

Zato’s bare fingers reached up to push the long bangs out of Venom’s face, revealing his extremely flustered expression. 

A sly smile split his handsome face. “I can tell. Nobody’s ever touched you like this before? Is it something you enjoy?”

Venom was trembling now, but out of fear, excitement, or something else entirely, he couldn’t quite determine. Something about all it felt so wrong, but even after all of his training and years spent forcing down his feelings and desires, he was still a slave to his own weak heart.

“It’s...it’s very good, milord. I like it very much.”

“Ahh.” The alcohol seemed to be settling in even harder. Zato was practically slobbering down his neck. “My sweet, sweet Venom. It was so hard to decide, but I’m not sure I made the right choice.”

Blue eyes widened. “What?”

“Hnn, how could I even ask? Millia was so beautiful and strong, but you…lord help me, I’m such a weak fool…”

“I-I, that’s-” Venom felt something forced against his neck, and he realized that Zato was sucking on it. “Milord, how can you say that about yourself? You’re the most stunningly brilliant man I’ve ever met!”

“Oh, Venom.” A hot, wet tongue ran over the already-forming bruise. “Do you know how I’ve longed for you? How much I’ve wanted to take you for myself? I’ve spent so long trying to ignore it all. What would the Guild say? But yet…” The man shuddered, making a soft, low noise. “I don’t care anymore. Millia’s gone. I don’t have to decide anymore.”

A warm, tense breath ghosted against Venom’s ear. “Do you love me?”

Venom couldn’t stop himself anymore. He threw his arms around his master’s shoulders, dragging him into a long, languid kiss. He only parted when it became harder to breathe, feeling the warmth flooding his system.

“Yes, milord. More than anything.”

Zato brought his hand up to tangle it in Venom’s hair once again. If he didn’t know any better, Venom would think that the man almost looked relieved. It wasn’t something he could ponder long, though, as his attention was pulled away by the feeling of another hand tugging on his belt.

"I love you, too."

It felt real. It was real enough to him. Venom let his thoughts wander away from the day's events, let his mind be carried away by the warmth and weight of Zato's body pressed up against his.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact I originally gave this a different ending where Zato denied the whole thing the morning after but I said fuck it let Venom have a good time we have enough canon angst already.


End file.
